Page 24 of Heat of Justice

Cody flicked her tongue over a spot of ketchup on her lip, prompting Kim to be tempted to stare again.

“The gift,” she repeated. “What? She was a witch?”

Kim did not often share this side of herself and her story... As in,never. And she might well have taken offense at the crude labeling if the look on Cody’s face had not been so open and earnest. It made her look younger. More innocent. Not as tough, for sure. Kim found herself wanting to smile in spite of herself. The detective appeared enthralled.Cute.

“I guess some people would use that word,” she allowed.

“What would you call it?” Cody prompted.

“Again, I’d say a sensitive. An intuitive.”

“Less dramatic; and more appropriate. Right?”

“Yes. The phenomenon is a little more mundane than you probably imagine.”

“I do have a vivid imagination,” Cody granted. She smiled and pointed to her food. “Please, carry on. And also, don’t forget to eat.”

What Kim might forget if she were not careful was the real reason for their meeting tonight, actually, and the fact that Cody was a cop. Well, maybe not completely for the latter since it was part of the attraction… But still, this was starting to feel less and less like a professional encounter. The woman was incredibly easy to talk to. Friendly, obviously kind, with the sort of looks that were not easily ignored. Kim found even the risk of nasty memories coming back not enough to completely extinguish the flame of desire she had felt earlier. Cody Miller was a little bit special.For sure.

“Basically, the gift runs in the family,” she went on. “My grandmother had it very strong. I think it bypassed my mother and jumped to me directly.”

“How did it start for you?”

“When I was four years old, living in Texas, I used to play with the neighbors’ dog in my yard all the time. My mom called it my imaginary friend, as she could never see the dog and thought the neighbors didn’t have one. One day, when I pleaded for her to believe me, she grew exasperated and went to them to ask. Turns out I had described their Australian Shepherd, Jed, to a T. Even down to the little silver tag he wore on his collar. But there was a catch.”

“What?” Cody prompted. “Don’t stop there!”

She laughed, and Kim could not help but smile again at her enthusiasm. Yes, she reflected.Very attractive.

“The neighbors said that Jed had passed away four months earlier. We’d only been in the house for three.”

“Wow.” Cody stared. “You played with a ghost dog?”

“Apparently, yes. Things stabilized for me after a few years. My mother also did nothing to encourage my ability, and I guess it’s like a muscle in that way. Use it or lose it.”

“Your mother did not want you to have the gift?”

“She was not a fan of this kind of stuff. Moving to Texas, with her left-brained engineer husband, was a chance for her to distance herself from the family lore.”

“What about you?”

“As I grew up, my unusual talent turned into a keen sense of intuition, like I said.”

“Yes, you did.” Cody’s eyes narrowed slightly. “And that it can be useful in your line of work.”

Had she noticed her hesitation and strong reluctance when Kim first mentioned this? Hence why she brought it back now? Kim schooled her expression into neutral.

“Yes, that’s it,” she nodded.

“But no more playing with ghosts,” Cody invited.

“No, that was a one-off.”

“And no visions?”

“None.”

“Mm… Okay.”

---